30 November 2009 9:15 AM

Not a vintage November, but at least it ended in style: three Tests that rugby so badly needed. The Wallabies waltzed around the Millennium Stadium like it was their turf, blitzing the defensive master Shaun Edwards at his own game. It was as if the Welsh backline were static tackling pads. The All Blacks, unexpectedly shining in white, dusted off the gear stick in Marseille and turned up the volume to 11 like only they can. Closer to home, Ireland secured their unblemished record for the year by choking the champions in the mist of Dublin's Croker. All magical stuff and not an England shirt in sight. That's an observation, not a dig. Okay, maybe it's a little dig, but I've been told by three wise men (it is that time of year after all) that rugby coverage is too negative at the moment. So here are some reasons to be cheerful.

Nigel Owens take a bow...

After a month of intense and overwhelmingly negative scrutiny over the state of the game, it is a big week for the lawmakers. The IRB are meeting under immense pressure to do something dramatic about gym monkeys and aerial ping-pong (amongst some other trendy buzzwords) as long as it isn't bringing back those ELVs. Such has been the focus throughout November on the current mess that is the breakdown, poor play has often been dismissed as an inevitable product of the current laws rather than an inevitable product of playing poorly.

Ireland versus South Africa, with all that pre-match hype and all that pride from the summer at stake, had the potential to be a niggling, scrappy, messy 'pingathon'. But Nigel Owens was a bastion of quiet, non-intrusive authority. He was fair, consistent and brilliant. He even stared down Victor Matfield. He didn't say anything, he just dared to stare the big man out after he saw vicious Vic do something he didn't like at a lineout. Matfield thought about opening his mouth. The referee's look told Matfield to stop thinking about opening his mouth.

Elsewhere he let the game run as freely as he possibly could, marshalled the breakdown with enough levity — and clarity — to let the game flow and the spectacle was all the better for it. And for him. He was a constant, looming presence of discipline only ever interrupting if, in his expert opinion, necessary. For one misty afternoon the breakdown wasn't a foggy mess, just the view.

Dazzling displays

After England and Wales only recently endured torrid afternoons made all the more embarrassing by the respective purple and yellow costumes their governing bodies had persuaded them to don for the day (and on a still morning you can hear the 'chink' of piggy banks filling up near the Thames and the Taff), New Zealand and Ireland came along and gave fans a reason to actually want the second kit. Both sides swapped their respective green and black for dazzling white strips of which Persil would have been proud. While the purple and yellow jumpers were only fit for goal posts, there was something stirring and elegant about the brilliant whites on show.

Candide Fabien

While most sports men and women around the world are so carefully media managed they have mastered the political art of talking without actually saying anything, along came France loosehead Fabien Barcella on Saturday night. His side were demolished by a rampant Kiwi outfit and everybody knew it, including him. What's more he said so: 'We came up against an outstanding team and we were used as a sparring partner.'

What a wonderful image and what refreshing honesty from a sports man willing to hold his hands up and admit not only defeat, but a thrashing. No denial, no talk of bigger pictures or long-term plans. Quelle dignite.

Lomu's pep talk

So what happened to the All Blacks during the week to transform them from slumbering giant to frenzied beast? A pep talk from Jonah Lomu. The New Zealand legend, currently based in France, was the camp's guest of honour on Thursday and, with his own rugby career sadly cut short by illness, he reminded the squad what it meant to wear the jersey. Full back Mils Muliania revealed: 'It was awesome to see a guy like that talk to us. He spoke a lot about still wanting to be in the black jersey, and he still dreams about it today. For an older guy like me that inspires you to keep being in the environment and want to play your best. He lost it through sickness and you never know what's around the corner. That in itself is inspiring.'

By no means the only reason for the Marseille massacre, it would be nice to think Lomu's words were repeated in the dressing room to wind up the troops before the All Blacks ran out and faced the French.

Day of the jackal

Richie McCaw. Heinrich Brussow. David Pocock/George Smith. SANZAR still dominate the Northern Hemisphere when it comes to the first nano-seconds at the breakdown and, with the laws as they are, the Southern Hemisphere opensides are masters at the art of the jackal, where the tackler, in one motion, swings his body round, gets to his feet and grabs the ball. Chances are you'll win a turnover or a penalty and you're almost impossible to clear out the way. It's not working wonders for the game as a spectacle, particularly since players can keep their hands in even when a ruck is formed, but, in the quest to be positive this week, you have to admire the speed and guile of these incredibly tricky customers.

Over to you...

Finally, there's going to be a lot of talk about laws this week and what needs to be done for the good of the game. More points for penalties? Less points for penalties? More free-kick infringements? No hands in the ruck? Is rugby in a hole or are the problems exaggerated by a hysterical media?

Join the debate by leaving your comments below or emailingluke.benedict@dailymail.co.uk

24 November 2009 5:14 PM

A miserable autumn series for the red rose has only confirmed fears about the state of the game, both on these shores and beyond. While England choke and stutter in neutral, going nowhere slowly, the game itself is trundling along like a January jogger after a greedy Christmas. Injuries keep on coming and the breakdown has never been more of a mess. The rules, and their current interpretations, are so biased towards the defending side that teams, and coaches, are too terrified to play any rugby in their own half. The ball is treated like something between a hot potato and a satellite if a player is more than 40 metres from the opposing try line. And if that wasn't enough, here are some other glum lessons from the Autumn series:

Too many flankers spoil the broth:

Once upon a time only the openside flanker was king at the breakdown (occasionally joined by his blindside and No 8), whose unique job it was to make a complete nuisance of himself and turn over ball. Such insolent behaviour has since become an essential skill of the modern rugby player. Consequently, sides are less daring in attack as all tacklers are so damn breakdown savvy, you simply cannot afford to get isolated for a moment. The problem is that if you have 30 Richie McCaws on the pitch, you don't get to see much rugby. (No offence, Richie).

All Blacks are masters of the dark arts:

Although it is often missed by the TV cameras, watching the All Blacks from the stands reveals just how crafty they are at the art of obstruction. Against the Welsh in Cardiff there were times when they resembled an American Football team, such was the technical guile of the blocking both in offence and defence. Referees really have to watch out for this one, it is becoming more blatant by the year and is now so professional, it can't merely be accidental.

Media makes a difference:

Isn't it amazing what three weeks of horribly negative headlines can do to a rugby team? If England had come out at the beginning of November with the same fire as they did against New Zealand, it could have been a very different month. Us hacks, as well as those horrible, treacherous former players and team-mates, were merely doing the patriotic thing by slagging off the side for weeks on end. It just goes to show there really is no such thing as bad press.

A lack of Prop stars:

Australia have a decent front row again, while England don't. When did that happen? All credit to PDJ and gang for stepping in while everyone else was on sick leave, but where is the strength in depth in the front row? Does the Guinness Premiership have too many foreign props? How did a few injuries lead the side from seasoned veterans who could win a scrum with a stare to a first-class rookie who was left to do his best? Answers on a postcard, please.

Northerners rarely better than bravehearts:

All credit to Scotland for a stonking performance against the wilting Wallabies at Murrayfield, but it was all brawn and no brain. It seems the best the Northern Hemisphere sides can do against the SANZAR monster at the moment is go into lockdown and try to steal a win (or draw, Ireland). It was wonderfully brave and courageous, but it didn't have a lot more going for it. And Scotland won't win like that again unless they only ever play at Murrayfield, in the rain, with Matt Gitaeu having a mare. Sorry if that sounds uncharitable at the beginning of the festive season, but it's probably true.

Having said that...

Congratulations to Andy Robinson. That is a seriously impressive turnaround of a rugby team that was treading water at best. Why not send your CV to Rob Andrew, Twickenham (formerly 'Fortress') and mark it: 'Haha, told you so'?

Carter's the undisputed champion:

He came, he saw Jonny and he conquered. He didn't even play particularly well but he was still a class apart. He stands out on his own (quite literally, as in on the gainline) and marshals a game like nobody else in the business. Nothing more to add, your honour.

The scrum is collapsing around us:

If you think the breakdown is a refereeing lottery, watch the scrum highlights (make that lowlights) from any game this weekend. This is the general order of play: crouch, touch, pause, engage, collapse, re-set, crouch, touch, pause, engage, collapse, injury, re-set, crouch, touch, pause, engage, collapse, ping, arbitrary penalty one way. Still at least the pros know what's going on right? Wrong. Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe admitted 'I am not an expert in that area' when asked about scrum issues against Wales. He's the captain of Argentina and a fantastic player who, wait for it, plays in the scrum. Aussie flanker David Pocock, who is keeping Wallaby legend George Smith out of the side, confessed outright that he simply stands up after a collapsed scrum and retreats 10 metres as he has no idea which way the penalty is going to go. So the best players in the world don't have a clue what's going on. Does anyone?

Where do England go from here?

Apart from serious selection issues, fitness worries, any cohesive strategy and a lack of direction, it was all rosey this month at Twickenham. Still they were brave, weren't they? Gosh they were brave.

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16 November 2009 8:43 AM

There is a classic Monty Python sketch in which some poor fool, irritated by a line of questioning, cries out, 'I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition' — at which point the Spanish Inquisition (or Michael Palin's version there of) jump out shouting, 'Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition.'

You could see the absurd scene unravelling at Martin Johnson's post-match press conference on Saturday. Three questions in and the England manager's infamous eyebrows said it all, burrowed into such an intense, low frown they almost made a beard. 'I didn't expect the Argentinian Inquisition,' his brow screamed. And how he could have done with Palin's interruption.

But the Monty Python link doesn't end there; a 'flying circus' is a perfect description of England's aerial obsession. The team were kitted out for a purple patch, but they played like purple plonkers. Before kick-off this weekend, the squad should swap flashy boots for over-sized clown shoes and scrum hats for colourful wigs. If they get the All Blacks giggling during the Haka, they might even have a chance.

How the Twickenham crowd could have done with a couple of Python sketches at half-time on Saturday when there wasn't a smile in the house. Just a lot of booing. The self-proclaimed 'fortress' is now an embarrassing label for the stadium. At least the Twickenham 'big top' would fit this weekend's circus theme nicely.

Three thousand, two hundred and fifty miles away on the same afternoon, Fabio Capello's second team faced five-time World Cup winners Brazil in Doha. A Brazil side led by Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri — or Dunga to everyone except his passport.

Dunga is a World Cup-winner who defined an era of football for his nation as a thuggish brute who set a style of play for the team; a practical, no-nonsense operator at the reins of a high-achieving national team going through a temporary identity crisis; a playing legend who has been hounded and lambasted by his national press for the style he has inflicted on his side; a man who had no professional coaching experience prior to being appointed the coach of his national team. Sound familiar?

The similarities between Martin Johnson and Dunga end there. Dunga's Brazil play with precision. Dunga's Brazil enter the park and execute a gameplan. Dunga occasionally smiles. Dunga has unearthed relatively unknown talents through choice and faith, not because the first, second and third-pick were stuck in a sling.

The Brazilian people are understandably and commendably proud of their football heritage, of the style and flavour of their national side. For the people of Brazil, the magicians in yellow should not simply achieve victory, they should do so by entertaining the crowd and mesmerising the opposition. In the favelas of Sao Paulo, the beautiful game is an artform, not a sport.

Dunga has added substance to that style. He has harnessed the class and added cojones. No player is bigger than the team, no individual's tricks greater than the team's performance. There is no space for the two Ronnies in his camp, no room for such ego.

The result? Brazil are back at number one in the charts. What a difference a Dunga makes. They will go into next year's World Cup as clear favourites for bookies and pundits alike. Dunga has not starved them of flair and experimentation, they still attempt, and often achieve, the terrifyingly impressive on a football pitch, but they do so in moderation. They do so with measure. As such, they have become harder to beat. There was something imperious about Brazil on Saturday night.

Admittedly Capello only had a second-string side available (while Johnson probably dreams of fielding a second-string side) but Dunga's destroyers effortlessly went about their business. Not spectacular and soft, but eye-catching and effective.

The brainless morons must take their share of the blame too. This week's video analysis ain't gonna be fun at Pennyhill Park for the England squad. But, at the same time, Johnson must stop treating every challenging question, every critic who dares doubt him, with tangible contempt. He is a coach now and as a coach he must be judged. His playing career means nothing while he is sat in the stands.

Dunga has an immense amount of talent at his disposal, from a race of people who can probably dribble a football before they can crawl. England are not the Brazilians of football. Even when number one in the world, that winning momentum was based on percentage rugby. But where Dunga can be credited, and where Johnson has so far failed, is with applying a workable system to the ranks. Dunga's side have an identity, they play with a purpose. They may occasionally fail in the execution of a plan, but they are following a blue print. They have a map.

Johnson, meanwhile, seems completely lost but too stubborn to ask for directions.

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09 November 2009 10:00 AM

Six years later and Sir Clive is still haunting the England camp. The quality of Jonny Wilkinson, Mad Dog Moody and (to some extent) Steve Thompson — the only three survivors from that golden age — shone in a team that looked all too dim elsewhere on the park. Say what you like about Woodward's management, he consistently put out a team that was stronger than its composite parts, whose individuals always attained a new-found status and hit a different level of performance when they wore the red rose. It's called raising your game. Few individuals in Johnson's teams have outgrown their club form, some have dipped markedly below it. Geraghty, Croft, Cueto, Monye, Banahan and the like are all regular stars on the Guinness Premiership scene, but they need to step up on England duty.

2. One-man band

Well, save swinging his left foot for a 79th-minute winning drop-goal it could hardly have gone better for him. Yes, him. Best tackler, best kicker, best tactician, best tan, at times best flanker, and best performer. Even my mum realises England are an entirely different proposition when he's in the side. But wouldn't it be good for everyone if he wasn't relied on quite so much? Geraghty was supposed to share some of the responsibility, but looked too often like a rabbit under floodlights. Jonny will always stand out as the one to watch at HQ, but it would be nice if 1-9 and 11-15 occasionally tried to hog some of the attention. It is, after all, a team sport.

3. Selection headache

It is very easy to criticise a team selection on Monday morning but ... Classy player that he is, Ugo Monye is not an international full back, despite playing there for Harlequins while Tom Williams serves his blood ban. His crucial missed tackle on Adam Ashley-Cooper — admittedly along with the equally helpless Mark Cueto — provided the Wallabies with their crucial try and he lacked the composure and stature that the position requires. In fact, he played like a winger filling in at full back, and you can hardly blame him. As for surprise picks Jordan Crane and Louis Deacon, was it a case of Leicester loyalty gone too far from Senor Johnson? Surely Haskell gets his chance on Saturday. And Erinle? Yes there were injuries, but was this the best XV of the rest?

4. Lack of adventure

Those of you who kindly read my letter last week will probably guess what I'm about to say. We wanted a little bit of dynamism, attacking flair, sense of adventure. Then Johnson picked his team and we knew what was coming. Home went the likes of Mathew Tait, David Strettle and Ben Foden and here came the hulks of Matt Banahan, Mark Cueto and Ayoola Erinle. Subtle they ain't. Rumour had it prior to kick-off that backs coach Brian Smith had told his backline to shift it wide to the big boys on the wing — asap. Not on this evidence. England won enough (though not a lot) clean, fast ball to try some moves in the midfield, hit angles at pace, throw a miss pass or two, to just... do... something...

5. Only when they think it's all over

What is it with England's national sides? Much like their football counterpart, the rugby team either go ahead, only to stop playing, or wait until it's too late (or they're too many points/goals down) before trying to play at all. England play not to lose, until they're losing, and then start trying to win, when winning is close to impossible. Why do the side need desperation and adversity to really get going? England would have a better chance against Argentina if they started the game 20 points down and were told there were only 20 minutes left.

6. Wallabies don't lose. You have to beat them

We didn't learn this on the weekend, we already knew it. First of all, there's no such thing as a bad Australian sports team. Second of all, Australians never walk, swim or wheel into a sports arena thinking there is a chance they might lose. As such, they never really do lose. Just other teams occasionally, or very occasionally, perform well enough to beat them. England, by contrast, often lose rather than get beaten. That's the difference.

7. Twickenham ain't what it used to be

Despite the hyperbolic drama in Sky's annual advertising campaign, HQ is no longer the fortress it was once. A rendition of Swing Low no longer produces the spine tingles it once did and teams don't worry about travelling to South West London as they once did. All that can change with a couple of victories, but on current form 'fortress Twickenham' is about as intimidating as a bouncy castle.

8. Unfit for the task

Lawrence Dallaglio has publicly doubted the side's fitness. He doesn't reckon the current set-up is anything like as fit as his generation of chiselled winners. Either the O2 shirt is somewhat unflattering or he might have a point. Although obviously not 'unfit', is the team suitably conditioned for 80 minutes at Test level? The first thing Sir Clive Woodward did on entering the England changing room was give the entire squad a new understanding of 'match fit' — and it meant being fitter than any other team on the planet. Look what happened next. Perhaps a few long runs with the odd sprint could replace another session in the weights room.

9. Which way from here, guv'nor?

It wasn't a lack of execution but a lack of direction that had England fans up and down the country spilling pints of beer or cups of tea on Saturday afternoon. This England outfit often seems to lack any identity or discernible game plan. It's all just a bit messy. Even if England play badly, it would be nice for fans if they tried to play a particular way, badly. Perhaps the most alarming element of the Johnson regime to date is its lack of direction. Twelve games and counting and he's yet to stamp an identity on the team.

10. Brawn will never replace brain

It would seem that Simon Shaw's 'gym monkey' expression is going to stick around for a while yet. Size is all well and good, but if you can't catch a pass, read a game, spot a gap, and basically any other stuff that doesn't only require brute strength, it really doesn't matter. Size is a bonus, but not a replacement for all the other essential elements that make up a rugby player. No doubt any player selected for England duty will be suitably talented to do all that stuff, but if such skills have been long neglected, they'll be long forgotten. For the next two weeks, the England camp should let the dumbbells get rusty, not the basic skills of the game.

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03 November 2009 2:59 PM

I am writing on behalf of the 246,000 (or so) fans who will file through the Twickenham turntables over the next three weeks bursting with hope. Not of thumping victories and champagne scores but with a desperate hope of seeing Test rugby played at its highest level.

The England team has picked up a nasty little habit of playing not to lose. It is negative, it is dour, it is dull. This may seem anathema to you of all people but winning isn't everything. At least not this month.

The side are still playing with a severe hangover from Sir Clive's party while the game itself has had its Alka-Seltzer and moved on. England must adapt to the changes and try something else. Don't throw caution to the wind, but perhaps tie caution to a kite and unleash it in a light breeze. Throw the ball around. Try things. Experiment.

You inherited a squad in a 'transitional phase' (to say the least) and your preparation this time around has been disrupted by seemingly endless bad news bulletins. Everyone knows that your Elite squad has been falling faster than Autumn leaves, but look on the bright side: there are plenty of fresh, young, exciting players in the squad (even if your youth selection policy was somewhat enforced this time around) and you have the time to shape a side, and a style, before the next World Cup.

Rugby has changed since your heady, Leicester days where the set piece dominated and more often than not, the bigger, nastier pack won. With modern defences and modern referees the set piece no longer rules the roost or the scoreboard and England cannot rely on the penetration of first-phase play.

There is, of course, a weight of expectation that sits on the shoulders of anyone who is in charge of the England rugby side — particularly so in your case with the sweet memories of a magnificent playing career on the line — but your shoulders are broader than most and you of all people are big enough to take the hits.

Last autumn England shipped 102 points to the Southern hemisphere heavyweights of Australia, South Africa and the All Blacks. Far worse than that, England scored one try. One try in three games is a more miserable statistic than three defeats from three. England played safe, ugly, laboured rugby and lost anyway.

To play with freedom the side must lose the fear of losing. The sweet chariot can keep swinging low but at least aim high. Unleash the Wilkinson-Geraghty axis as a creative force, not a kicking metronome.

The Lions lost the series over the summer, but they did so playing such an impressive, dynamic style of rugby, providing such an extraordinary advert for the game, that they will be long remembered. In fact, the 2009 tourists will be remembered far longer for losing in such style than had they ground out a series victory with defensive, percentage rugby.

For one month, please forget your 'winning ugly' mantra. Try playing pretty and let's just see what happens.

Finally, there was one law change which really could, and should, make a difference. Given the high percentage of serious injuries caused at the scrum, a change to the rules at the scrum's engagement has a great deal of support. Instead of a 'hit' when the front rows make contact — which gains vital momentum but creates an impact of enormous force which is absorbed by the necks and shoulders of a vulnerable few — opposing scrums should bind first before applying any pressure at all.

The change would certainly upset traditionalists and there can be no denying it would significantly alter the nature and identity of the scrum, but it would do so without reducing its tactical significance or competitive edge.

Not only would it be a damn sight safer, but it might also stabilise the process and prevent the endless re-setting of collapsed scrums which has become such an eye-sore in recent seasons.

Law 20.1 "Forming the scrum" section (k) already says:

"Stationary and parallel. Until the ball leaves the scrum half’s hands, the scrum must be stationary and the middle line must be parallel to the goal lines. A team must not shove the scrum away from the mark before the ball is thrown in.

Penalty: Free Kick"

I have never understood how the engagement "hit" can be viewed as anything other than an attempt to "shove the scrum away from the mark before the ball is thrown in". So, perhaps, abolishing the "hit" just need referees to enforce the existing Laws.

— Don Neil

Don, spot on. You are absolutely right to make this point. Is a law really a law if it's being almost entirely ignored? The IRB need to revisit the big book of rules and make sure referees are enforcing the existing laws as they are meant to be enforced. Did anyone see one scrum this weekend — at any level — where the engagement looked anything like it is described above? I think not... (And let's not even get started on feeding at the scrum...)

I purchased the Lions 2009 DVD under the impression we would see the Tests being played. We didn't, apart only from the very shortest of clips that were disjointed and which gave no indication or continuity of the play at all. So disappointed was I that I sent the DVD back, for I believe it to have been a con. No-one wants to watch constant clips of team talks, the selection process or players on the training ground. All I wanted was to watch the Test Matches but they weren't to be seen

— Derek Peake

Derek I'm sorry to say I think this is unfairly harsh criticism. I would be very surprised if the majority of people bought the Lions DVD with the intention of simply watching match highlights. In fact people buy the tour DVD precisely for the team talks, training, selection meetings etc to get an insight into this otherwise hidden element of the Lions experience. If you simply want to see highlights of the games, a separate DVD offering exactly that is widely available. And if you've been good this year, you could mention it when you write to Santa...